The month our lives changed

Friday

Everyday life changed gradually over the course of a surreal month, receding a little day by day with each new coronavirus restriction — and then, for many people, seemingly all at once.

Everyday life changed gradually over the course of a surreal month, receding a little day by day with each new coronavirus restriction — and then, for many people, seemingly all at once.

Suddenly, their workplace was closed, or their children were home from school with nowhere to go, and the pandemic that had seemed abstract became concrete.

Rhode Island has been on the aggressive end of state-enforced social distancing to stop the spread of the novel virus along with Northeast neighbors and states where cases appeared early.

Rhode Island declared a state of emergency nine days after early hot spot Washington state did so, two days after hard-hit New York and one day before Massachusetts and Connecticut.

It closed school buildings three days after Washington, the same day as Massachusetts (announcing closure before the Bay State,) one day before Connecticut and two days before New York.

And Rhode Island frowns on gatherings of more than five people. Most other authorities, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, set the bar at 10 people.

Of course, some states, particularly in the South, still have not adopted some of the major social-distancing measures now widespread in the Northeast.

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Looking back on a March 2020 defined by coronavirus, a few dates stick out.

Here is a look back at how it all unfolded:

Jan. 28: “As federal health officials continue to monitor the outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a new form of coronavirus first detected in Wuhan, China, the Rhode Island Department of Health is continuing to coordinate closely with healthcare providers,” the agency said in a news release.

Feb. 1: Massachusetts confirms its first case of COVID-19.

Feb. 20: Fifteen coronavirus cases are confirmed in the United States.

“The risk level for Rhode Islanders right now remains low,” Rhode Island Health Director Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott said in a news release. “However, this is an evolving situation. For that reason, we have been taking extensive, comprehensive preparedness steps for several weeks and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.”

March 1: The first positive case of COVID-19 in Rhode Island is identified at state health laboratories. It’s St. Raphael Academy administrator Marc Thibault, who had just returned from a school trip to Italy. Two students associated with the trip later would test positive.

Gov. Gina Raimondo cancels a planned trip to Chantilly, Virginia to campaign for Michael Bloomberg’s presidential bid so that she can manage the emergency.

March 5: With companies such as Hasbro halting international work travel, Rhode Island asks schools to cancel foreign trips and people who have been to China, Iran, Italy, South Korea or Japan in the previous 14 days to self-quarantine.

Visitors to nursing homes and hospitals are limited.

March 9: Raimondo declares a state of emergency. This allows the state to request federal funds, to access a national stockpile of supplies, medicines and life-saving devices, and to call up the National Guard.

The state Department of Labor and Training announces it is waiving the seven-day waiting period to file for unemployment.

March 10: The Ivy League, where Brown University plays, is the first Division I conference to cancel its basketball tournament. Others, including the Atlantic 10 and the Big East, would follow suit two days later.

March 11: Raimondo bans gatherings of more than 250 people after five new Rhode Island coronavirus cases are identified.

Newport cancels its St. Patrick’s Day parade under public pressure, a day after the City Council had voted to hold it.

URI announces it will suspend in-person classes, starting March 16.

March 12: The World Health Organization declares coronavirus a global pandemic.

March 13: Raimondo announces she is closing Rhode Island K-12 school buildings statewide the following Monday, March 23. Students will practice “distance learning.”

Unemployment claims soar to record levels.

The General Assembly cancels sessions.

Providence’s federal courthouse is shut; state courts announce the suspension of jury trials.